ENG tour of NZ, 2023

NZ vs ENG, 1st Test

Preview

The two-match test series between New Zealand and England (NZ vs ENG) will take place on Thursday (February 16) at 06:30 AM IST Live. The first match of the test series will be played at the Bay Oval, Tauranga. The newly appointed test skipper of Black Caps' Tim Southee will be taking the charge of the side against fearless Ben Stokes' English side in this test series at Home.

Following a sluggish start in the last year, the English side turned around its game to win 9 out of the last 10 tests. Unstoppable Ben Stokes and McCullum's side have won six of them came while chasing the target.

Recently English side travelled to Pakistan for a three-test match series and they dominated the series 3-0 on Pakistan's home soil. The 23-year-old right-handed elegant batter Harry Brook was the player of the series with 3 hundred at an average of 93.60 in three tests. While the left-arm spinner Jake Leach led the bowling unit with 15 wickets. 

Current World Test Series winner Black Caps had the worst year in tests as they lost 5 of the 8 tests last year. NZ drew the series with the Bangla tigers and the Proteas at home, followed by a 3-0 defeat on English soil. Just like Bne Stokes' side, NZ travelled to Pakistan for a two-test match series in which they drew 0-0 as both the test matches ended in a nail-biter draw. The left-handed batter Tom Latham scored 278 runs in the series with 1 century and two half-centuries, while the right-arm leg break spinner Ish Sodhi topped the wicket chart with 13 wickets.

ENG toured NZ back in 2018 & 2019 for two two-test match series under the leadership of Joe Root and Kane Williamson respectively. The Black Caps defeated them 1-0 in both. The English side took revenge at home by beating the visitors 3-0 in 2022. In 110 tests, England has registered 52 wins against New Zealand and has lost on 12 occasions.

It’s been an unwanted year for NZ as they failed to win any test match against Pakistan at home. After reaching the finals of consecutive ODI WCs, followed by the first Test Championship series win against India at Southampton, they have slumped to a new low. With just 2 wins in the last 10 tests, the new skipper of the side Tim Southee has a big task to start the home season with a bang. Latham will be opening the innings with Devon Conway. He was the leading run-scorer against Pakistan with 278 runs. Conway had an amazing start to his Test career and found his lost form in the series against Pakistan, where he scored a century and a half-century.

After a series of bad performances, it's good to see the former test skipper of the side Kane Williamson back in form. He scored his 25th century (his 5th double hundred) against Pakistan in the 2nd test match. The 32-year-old veteran batter has 853 runs in 25 innings against England so far. Black Caps also has some solid middle-order batters with the likes of Henry Nicholls, Daryl Mitchell, and Tom Blundell will play. The right-handed batter Mitchell averages 58.35 after 14 Tests with 4 centuries and 5 half-centuries. Though he doesn’t bowl much, Southee can use him as an extra spinner if they pick an extra pacer. 

After a successful India tour, left-handed batter Michael Bracewell will get a chance to continue his test dream. 30-year-old leg-break spinner Ish Sodhi will be New Zealand’s lead spinner, as the management has dropped Ajaz Patel. He was the leading wicket-taker against Pakistan with 13 wickets in 2 test matches. The likes of Tim Southee and Neil Wagner will lead the pace attack for the Hosts against England. Skipper Southee has an exceptional record against England. In 17 tests, he has taken 66 wickets against the visitors. NZ has added Kyle Jamieson to the squad. The tall bowler of the side had suffered a back injury during the English tour and was out for 8 months but he has been ruled out of the test series due to an injury.

Ben Stokes' side England has been riding on confidence of some another level. Both Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum have changed the team's approach since taking over. The English side will go with Ben Duckett and Zack Crawley to open the innings. Both batters had a good series against Pakistan. Duckett finished below Harry Brook as the second-leading run-scorer of the series. He scored 357 runs in 6 innings with a century and 3 half-centuries.

The right-handed batter Ollie Pope’s revival after taking the number 3 spot has been phenomenal for England. Pope has two centuries and 5 half-centuries at the number three position in his last 9 Tests. Looking at the form of the former red-ball skipper Joe Root, he will be the player to watch out for in this series. 32-year-old Root is the leading run-scorer of the WT series 2021-23 cycle. Root has scored 1915 runs in 22 tests with 8 centuries and 6 half-centuries. Besides that, he has 1388 runs against NZ in 16 Tests. English middle order is well balanced. The trio of Harry Brooks, Ben Stokes, and Ben Foakes will be a threat to NZ.

After missing the PAK tour, veteran bowler Stuart Broad and Matty Potts are back in the English squad. Potts made his debut against NZ at home, taking 14 wickets in the 3 tests. The Visitors will rotate James Anderson and Stuart Broad in the series. James Anderson and Stuart Broad will lead the pace attack. Robinson has 60 wickets in 14 Tests. The left-arm spinner Jack Leach will be the only spinner in the squad. 

Match Details

Match: NZ vs ENG, 1st Test, England tour of New Zealand, 2023

Date: Thursday, February 16, 2023

Time: 06:30 AM

Venue: Bay Oval, Tauranga, New Zealand

Pitch and Weather Report

Bay Oval assists the pacers with extra swing and bounce from the early hour of the test match. In the first innings but switches its allegiance to the batters as the match progresses. The 1st Test between NZ and ENG will be played at Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui, from 16th February. It is going to be a day-night pink-ball encounter. Bay Oval holds a capacity of 15000+ spectators and has hosted 3 Tests, 30 ODIs & 15 T20Is so far. The Hosts' Black Caps have recorded the highest total of 615 against ENG at this venue. In all 3 Tests that ended up in the results, the team batting second won on 2 occasions. The average second-inning score is 437, more than the first innings. It gets difficult to bat in the third innings. The team winning the toss should bowl first. 

The weather forecast for the matchday on 16th February 2023 at the Bay Oval, Tauranga is expected to be overcast with some likely rain with a high of 22 degrees Celsius and with 75% chance of humidity, with a cool wind of 14 km/h. A rainy morning is expected in Bay Oval, Tauranga during the first two days of the first test match with a 70% chance meanwhile on the remaining days of the test match we can expect a full day of play.

NZ vs ENG Test Squads

SA: Tim Southee (captain), Michael Bracewell, Tom Blundell (wk), Devon Conway, Matt Henry, Kyle Jamieson, Tom Latham, Daryl Mitchell, Henry Nicholls, Ish Sodhi, Blair Tickner, Neil Wagner, Kane Williamson, Will Young 

ENG: Ben Stokes (captain), James Anderson, Stuart Broad, Harry Brook, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ben Foakes (wk), Will Jacks, Dan Lawrence, Jack Leach, Ollie Pope, Matthew Potts, Ollie Robinson, Joe Root, Olly Stone

NZ vs ENG Probable Playing XIs

NZ: Tom Latham, Devon Conway, Kane Williamson, Henry Nicholls, Daryl Mitchell, Tom Blundell (wk), Michael Bracewell, Niel Wagner, Blair Tickner, Tim Southee(C), Ajaz Patel

ENG: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (C), Ben Foakes (wk), Jack Leach, Ollie Robinson, Stuart Broad, James Anderson 

Match Prediction

The Visitors playing fascinating test cricket since Ben Stokes has taken over the captaincy for England. The English side is high on confidence, with 9 wins in the last 10 tests. These test victories came over Pakistan, New Zealand, India, and South Africa. Not only the batters but also the bowlers have contributed equally to the revival. England has beaten New Zealand 3-0 in the last year.

But the only stat that can save the Hosts is England’s poor record in the pink-ball test. The Visitors have lost 5 of their 6 pink-ball tests. Their last victory in the day-night test came 6 years back in 2017 against the Windies. Since then, they have lost against NZ, India, and Australia. Besides that, ENG has had zero wins in NZ since 2008. We say NZ to dominate this test match having the advantage of home conditions.

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